You see sufficient value to allocate time and money to exhibit. After all, your current and potential customers have made it a point to attend. A video playing on a screen in your booth helps attract more attention, gives visitors a reason to stay at your booth longer, helps explain new or complicated concepts more easily, and gives you an advantage over your competitors and surrounding booths without videos.
Small trade show booth – with a video playing front and center.
Same size trade show booth, similar setup – without video.
• Attract More Attention
People are deluged with exhibitor’s messages and products while they walk around the aisles. It can be challenging to get noticed in this “short attention span” environment. A video playing gives passersby a reason to pause while walking by your booth, to see what you’re all about.
• Longer Booth Visits
You and your staff are there to engage as many potential customers as possible during the relatively brief convention time. If you’re tied up talking to someone – as you should be all the time – video allows those waiting to watch messages you’ve had prepared just for this purpose. In addition to holding them there for awhile, the message itself educates about your product or service, giving visitors an additional touch that will help them remember you. Plus it just makes your booth more vibrant and dynamic.
• Competitive Advantage
You’ll probably note that the bigger players in the market usually have videos playing in their booth – and the larger their presence, the more of it. It also makes good sense if what you’re selling can be best visualized in it’s intended environment (i.e. if you’re marketing a golf product, it helps for potential customers to see it “in action” on a golf course, which can be displayed perfectly with video.) It’s good eye candy to draw people in, and then you can convert them to customers more easily.
“It’s a jungle in there!”
Another thought: some folks prefer a more indirect communication style allowed by watching a video, either because that’s their personality or because they’ve been engaged by too many people already that day. Give them – and yourself – a break and offer another option for learning about what you have to offer. It’ll make your job easier when you do talk to them.
Whatever you’re exhibiting, think about the best way to educate and entertain your customers. If your product or service can be explained with video, consider it a great tool for ROI. It’s a good way to tell your story, the way you want it told. If you already have a marketing video playing on your website, that might be a suitable option for the trade show booth, which gives you more bang for your marketing buck.
